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• Duh: Analyst Says TV Programming Price Increases Are Unsustainable And "A Train Wreck In The Making"
• Kiip Is The Perfect Company To Show Off The Potential Of Apple Passbook. Take A Look.
• Foursquare Updates iOS App, But No "New Features" Are Present. Perhaps A Bug Fix For "Explore"?
• Apple Q4 Financial Results And Conference Call Coming October 25
• Nuance's "Nina" Brings Voice-Activated Search To OfficeDrop's Document Management Service
• Rumor Roundup: Google's New Nexus Phone Is Said To Launch This Month, But Which One Is It?
• Klout CEO Joe Fernandez Responds To Criticism, Talks Job Descriptions That Include Score "Requirements" [TCTV]
• NYU Professor Open Sources 'Utopia' By Sir Thomas More
• Google Says Apps For Education Now Has More Than 20 Million Users
• Facebook Will Use Datalogix Offline Purchase Records To Show Ads The Perfect Number Of Times
• Former Disney Exec Paul Yanover Takes Over As Fandango's New President
• The Clean Web Movement: Mobile's Influence On Startup Design
• App.net Now Has 20,000 Users, Drops Its Price From $50 To $36 Per Year, Introduces A $5 Per Month Plan
• Apple Support: Purple Flaring Is "Normal Behavior" For iPhone 5 Camera
• Braintree Streamlines Sign-Ups, Cuts Fees For Developers To Bring Payments To Their Apps
• MindTouch Social Help System Aligns With Salesforce Ecosystem, Exemplifies What Oracle Lacks
• App Map For iOS Lets You See What Apps Are Popular In Your Area
• Rumor: Google Wants To Acquire Facial Recognition Startup Viewdle For $30M
• Remember Ultrabooks? Yeah, That Was A Good Time
• Facebook Acqhires Founders Of Carsabi Who Will Sell Off Their Car Price Comparison Site

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Duh: Analyst Says TV Programming Price Increases Are Unsustainable And "A Train Wreck In The Making"	Top
Your monthly cable or satellite bill just keeps going up -- that's the reality we all face. And while consumers are getting squeezed by price increases, they're not alone: Bernstein Research analyst Craig Moffett sees a reckoning coming, as increases in the cost of programming are also outpacing cable or satellite providers' ability to support them. Over the last five years, programming costs at DirecTV have risen 32 percent. But perhaps more importantly, those increases are accelerating, with costs rising upwards of 10 percent year-over-year. Meanwhile, income growth among U.S. residents has actually been negative during that time. So, according to Moffett, "Something's gotta give."
Kiip Is The Perfect Company To Show Off The Potential Of Apple Passbook. Take A Look.	Top
The most interesting new feature in iOS 6 to me was Passbook. The idea that I can now have quick access to movie, plane and other tickets, as well as relevant information for where I am at any given time, is an absolute time-saver. After I heard about Passbook, I immediately reached out to Brian Wong, CEO of Kiip. Kiip is the reward platform that works with both developers and advertisers to bring app users great rewards for meeting certain milestones in a game or other app, on both iOS and Android devices. It looks like Kiip wasted no time getting involved with Passbook and is now stepping its new program out of beta, for all users.
Foursquare Updates iOS App, But No "New Features" Are Present. Perhaps A Bug Fix For "Explore"?	Top
Explore is becoming the focus for foursquare. You can tell that with every release and update that the company has made the last few months. Recently, the iOS app got a simpler design treatment on the Explore tab, along with a new way to find cool places to go and eat. This appears to be a re-release of a previous update, perhaps with some bug fixes that aren't documented in the following copy.
Apple Q4 Financial Results And Conference Call Coming October 25	Top
Apple is holding its fourth quarter conference call on October 25, according to an announcement from the company. The call will take place at 2:00 P.M. PT/5:00 P.M. ET, and should provide another early glimpse into how the iPhone 5 is doing since the quarter ended in September.
Nuance's "Nina" Brings Voice-Activated Search To OfficeDrop's Document Management Service	Top
Document management provider OfficeDrop has a new capability for voice-activated search that represents just the start in how mobile apps are changing with the advent of natural-language, speech-recognition technology. The service is built on Nuance, the Boston-based company that has developed a speech-recognition service called Nina, which debuted in August.
Rumor Roundup: Google's New Nexus Phone Is Said To Launch This Month, But Which One Is It?	Top
The Galaxy Nexus' one year launch anniversary is fast approaching, and as if on cue, the geekier parts of the web have gone abuzz today with rumors of a new Nexus device (and possibly a new version of Android) that could hit the streets "in the next 30 days." The timing certainly helps explain things — tablets and funky, arguably misguided media streamers aside, Google's Nexus-branded smartphones always seem to trickle out toward the end of the year, and we're very nearly there.
Klout CEO Joe Fernandez Responds To Criticism, Talks Job Descriptions That Include Score "Requirements" [TCTV]	Top
Over the weekend, I wrote a post about Salesforce telling potential job applicants that one of its "desired skills" was having a Klout score of 35 or more. Needless to say, I found this to be a bit unsettling, as I instantly imagined other companies forcing this into their own job applications.
NYU Professor Open Sources 'Utopia' By Sir Thomas More	Top
For if you suffer your people to be ill-educated, and their manners to be corrupted from their infancy, and then punish them for those crimes to which their first education disposed them, what else is to be concluded from this, but that you first make thieves and then punish them. That's perhaps the most famous and beloved quote from Sir Thomas More's Utopia. If you haven't read it yet, you certainly should. You have no reason not to, as a Professor at NYU named Stephen Duncombe has "open-sourced" it.
Google Says Apps For Education Now Has More Than 20 Million Users	Top
Google just announced that its Apps for Education suite is now being used by more than 20 million students, faculty members, and staff worldwide. The company made this announcement in a blog post celebrating the upcoming World Teachers' Day on October 5.
Facebook Will Use Datalogix Offline Purchase Records To Show Ads The Perfect Number Of Times	Top
Show someone a Facebook ad once and they'll forget, 100 times and they'll be annoyed. So Facebook is going to use offline purchase data to help businesses increase ROI up to 40% by showing them the "sweetspot" of ad frequency, it announced today at New York's Advertising Week. Privacy fears flared recently when the Financial Times revealed Facebook was working with in-store purchase tracker Datalogix. Facebook has since reassured users their personal data is only shared securely and they can opt out. Most won't, and the data will let the social network draw a bold line from smart advertising on Facebook to big sales.
Former Disney Exec Paul Yanover Takes Over As Fandango's New President	Top
Fandango has been steadily growing as the go-to place for users to purchase movie tickets online and on their mobile phone. But now it also wants to boost its original content, to become a go-to place for movie fans to learn about upcoming movies as well as those in theaters or available on Blu-ray. To do so, it's hired former Disney exec Paul Yanover. Yanover, who previously served as EVP and managing director of Disney Online, will report to NBCU President of Digital Nick Lehman. Fandango EVP and GM Rick Butler will remain at the company and continue to run Fandango's day-to-day operations. I spoke with Yanover earlier today, about what his plans are for Fandango, both as a place for users to purchase movie tickets and as a destination site for movie fans.
The Clean Web Movement: Mobile's Influence On Startup Design	Top
Whether it's in response to the over-stimulation of banner ads and animated gifs, the proliferation of mobile and tablet devices whose screen sizes dictate simpler navigation and layout options, a reaction to our information-overloaded society, or, likely, all of the above, a new class of web startups is adopting the minimalist look in terms of their user interface and design. This "clean web" movement, if you can call it that, is defined by simple typography, lots of negative space, and thoughtful but careful use of color. And it's seemingly everywhere you look these days.
App.net Now Has 20,000 Users, Drops Its Price From $50 To $36 Per Year, Introduces A $5 Per Month Plan	Top
App.net just announced some price changes to its Twitter-like service focused on unlimited API usage. The major change is a much needed 40 percent price drop for its yearly subscription. It now costs $36 per year. In addition to adjusting existing plans, the company is announcing another plan to try out the service. You can subscribe for $5 a month while you are uncertain about using the service or not.
Apple Support: Purple Flaring Is "Normal Behavior" For iPhone 5 Camera	Top
Earlier, we reported that Apple's iPhone 5 seemed to have some issues with purple flaring when taking photos with a light source just in or off frame, as reported by a number of users and duplicated in tests. Today, Gizmodo reader Matt Van Gastel received a response from Apple's engineering team routed through a support representative which essentially says that behavior isn't cause for concern.
Braintree Streamlines Sign-Ups, Cuts Fees For Developers To Bring Payments To Their Apps	Top
Braintree already counts Uber, Fab and Airbnb among its clientele for processing payments and it's seeing $1 billion a year in mobile transactions. Now it's trying to give rival Paypal even more of a run by cutting fees and easing the sign-up process for developers. They're offering instant approval for new merchant accounts, which means a developer can add payments to their apps in about 30 minutes. This is instead of either having to wait several days for approval or partnering with a payment aggregator.
MindTouch Social Help System Aligns With Salesforce Ecosystem, Exemplifies What Oracle Lacks	Top
MindTouch is a services company that has done what innovative companies do: taken the concept of the user manual and turned it on its head. Its technology exemplifies what Oracle lacks and the advantage that Salesforce.com has in the market by developing an app ecosystem.
App Map For iOS Lets You See What Apps Are Popular In Your Area	Top
One of the things that I usually end up doing at a bar, either after a few drinks or massive boredom, is discuss my latest favorite iOS apps. You know what I'm talking about, a bunch of nerds sitting around a few adult beverages with bright screens flickering. I'll usually say something stupid like "What do you think about the new Facebook update?" Lame, maybe. Fun, yes.
Rumor: Google Wants To Acquire Facial Recognition Startup Viewdle For $30M	Top
Google, according to a report by Forbes, has acquired Viewdle, an augmented reality and facial recognition startup. Forbes says the price was likely around $30 million, but we are still trying to confirm both the acquisition and the price.
Remember Ultrabooks? Yeah, That Was A Good Time	Top
An IHS report has estimated that 10.3 million Ultrabooks shipped (not sold) worldwide in 2012, a considerably change from their original forecast of 22 million sold this year. 2013 should be OK, though, right? Wrong. IHS is expecting sales of 44 million in 2013, down from a forecast of 61 million. Now those numbers are arguably nothing to sneeze at. There are dozens of OEMs and resellers flogging their wares and with Windows 8 around the corner it's hard to convince the average consumer to pick up an ultralight let alone a PC.
Facebook Acqhires Founders Of Carsabi Who Will Sell Off Their Car Price Comparison Site	Top
Facebook has just closed a deal to hire Dwight Crow and Christopher Berner, the two founders and only teammates of the Y Combinator used car price comparison site Carsabi. The founders are now looking to sell the site so it can live on even though Facebook won't be needing it. Facebook tells me there wasn't something specific that attracted it to the co-founders other than that "they're awesome entrepreneurs". It won't say what team the founders will be joining. However, we see fitting in behind the wheel of Facebook Gifts or Events. Here's why.

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